M Zubair Afandi: PR welcomes Bersih's compromise, urges govt reciprocate

Friday, July 8, 2011

PR welcomes Bersih's compromise, urges govt reciprocate

Harakahdaily

KUALA LUMPUR, Jul 5: The decision by Bersih 2.0 to move its much awaited rally for electoral reforms to a stadium has been welcomed, with Pakatan Rakyat saying the compromise on its part should be reciprocated by the authorities.

“Our readiness should be welcomed by the authorities by stopping the harsh approach taken until today. The three parties are ready to cooperate with the police and other authorities to ensure that the scheduled assembly takes place in a good and peaceful manner,” said a joint statement issued by PAS, PKR and DAP. The statement was signed by PAS's Mohamad Sabu, PKR's Nurul Izzah Anwar and Teresa Kok of DAP.

The statement further reiterated PR's commitment to Bersih's objective for a total reformation of the country’s election system in order to make it clean and fair, the raison d'etre of the coalition of more than sixty NGOs whose planned peaceful rally in the capital attracted a cacophony of racially-toned attacks from UMNO and its offshoot Perkasa.

LADY OF THE HOUR ... Ambiga swarmed by reporters at the National Palace, July 5.

Bersih chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan, national laurette A.Samad Said and IKRAM representative Zaid Kamaruddin, emerged from the meeting at the National Palace today announcing they would take up the offer to have the rally in a stadium.

The decision is believed to be taken following threats of violence on participants, as well as an attempt to orchestrate a riot by Perkasa with a view to put the blame on Bersih.

Such a suspicion was fuelled by a report today of the police's seizure of Molotov cocktails, weapons together with Bersih T-shirts, all of which were hidden at several spots in the city centre.

'Brazen abuse' condemned

The rally on July 9, which would have been the second major rally in the capital since the first rally by Bersih which gathered more than 50,000 people in November 2007, is to highlight its eight demands on electoral reforms before the general elections.

The intense crackdown by police on rally supporters, leading to the arrest of close to 200 people mostly for wearing the Bersih T-shirts, prompted a statement by the Agong on July 3 urging all parties to go to the negotiation table.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian Bar praised the Agong's willingness to grant an audience to representatives of the Bersih steering committee earlier today.

It however condemned the government's "over-reaction", describing it an "obvious and deliberate escalation in the Government’s brazen abuse of power and persecution of dissenting voices over the past few days".

"This has been evident in, among others, the threat of declaration of a state of emergency, use of the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime) Ordinance 1969 (“EO”) to re-arrest six individuals, arrests of many other individuals, charges against the 24 activists arrested in Penang, declaration of BERSIH 2.0 as an “unlawful society”, and investigation of the BERSIH 2.0 Chairperson’s personal bank account. The denial of access to legal counsel and family visits for the six individuals is also deplorable," said a statement by its president Lim Chee Wee.